Don't sweat Father's Day gift giving. Every dad can use a new summer hat or a cap.

Ties? Got ’em. Cufflinks? Got ’em, never uses ’em. Cologne? Got it. Rarely uses it. Arts-and-Crafts projects? You’ve outgrown making them.

What on earth is left to get Dad for Father’s Day?

Why not get him a nice summer straw hat or a lightweight linen cap? Dad will look great sporting a hat this summer. Plus, it will help protect him from the sun’s harsh rays. You will definitely be his favorite if you keep him looking sharp while saving him from skin cancer.

Consider the All-American straw fedora like the Stetson Pasadena. It delivers classic style in a sand-colored straw or black. Made by Stetson, you know it is a quality fedora. Best of all, you get all of that for fewer than $100, so you won’t break the bank.

Maybe your father is more of a cap-wearing type of guy. Why not get him a tried and true Linen Newsboy Cap? Relatively inexpensive, these 100% linen caps are American made and come in 10 different colors.

If neither of those will do, don’t worry. Hats-Plus has more than 600 models of hats from which to choose online.

Have you purchased your hat for the Kentucky Derby, yet? Hats Plus has a huge selection of women's hats for the very first time during Derby season.

Post time is fast approaching for the Kentucky Derby, and Hats Plus now how a lovely complement of ladies’ hats for the first time for the Derby.

Churchill Downs is the site of the Derby and its many traditions from mint juleps to a parade of spring and summer finery. The women’s hats are watched by some almost as much as the horses.

Our ladies’ hats range from flirty straw affairs to elegant felt numbers with incredible plumage. Be sure to order yours soon to make sure it arrives in time for your Derby party.

The Hat Whisperer emerges from the deep burrough where straw hats are stored. What does this mean? Spring and Summer are closer than they seem. Hang in there, America. This winter has to die eventually.

Spring and Summer can’t be that far away.

Honestly.

Otherwise we wouldn’t already be changing over our store with straw hats!

Our work has only just begun, but we are already boxing up some of the wool and fur felt. Better yet, we’re bringing up the straw and linen.

Best of all, new models of summer hats are starting to arrive from Stetson, Biltmore and Dobbs. Some of them are already on display in the store, if you can swing by to see. If the internet is as close as you can get to us, check back regularly because we soon will be adding them online!

Until then, think warm thoughts. This winter has to end eventually.

Not surprising, there has been a run on ultra-warm hats to keep the deadly cold at bay.

But, hey. It’s Chicago in winter, and Hats Plus is more than ready with plenty more great styles of warm hats to get you ready for the next arctic blast, which forecasters are already predicting we’ll have within a month.

Here are a couple great winter hat ideas for all senses of style:

Kangol makes some of the most fashionable hats and caps on the market. This wool 504 cap delivers on the cool factor while still allowing you to stay warm with earflaps that can be hidden inside the hat when you don't want them.

Does your teenager think they are too cool to wear a hat in winter? If you are tired of fighting with them to wear some dorky stocking cap they’ve had since they were a kid, try helping them score some points with the other kids while keeping them warm with a wool Kangol cap equipped with stealthy earflaps.  When it is cold and they are outside, they can flap the ear covers down from inside the cap to stay warm. As soon as they are safe inside, they can tuck the earflaps back up and go back to chillin’ in the ever-stylish Kangol 504 wool cap design.

The Tilley Montana offers a warm wool felt fedora that is water and snow repellent AND hidden earflaps to provide extra warmth on those extra cold days.

Maybe you like the fedora look, but need to find a way to keep your ears warm in the wind and severe cold? Try out the Tilley Montana. It is a warm wool-felt fedora with a slightly Western flair. This hat is water and snow repellent. The polyester inner lining helps wick away sweat and moisture. Best of all, it also has tuckaway ear flaps! It is one of the toughest element-fighting fedoras we carry.

If that isn’t enough, it is time to turn to the thermal nuclear option. Whether they are made from leather, fur, faux fur or fleece, our bombers are the warmest hats we carry. Each bomber fits snuggly against your skull to help trap the heat and fend off the wind. Earflaps extend to tie up under your chin, keeping both your ears and cheeks warm. It is worth looking a little like an old-skool aviator or explorer for this type of heat.

The Mad Bomber is one of the all-around warmest hats we carry and perfect for defeating winter's coldest, especially during a polar vortex.

Add some style and color to your winter with a brown Henschel Leather Basketweave Fedora

Too many people fall prey to gloomy winter months with hats and caps that seem to suit that mood.

Henschel’s new leather basketweave design is a smokin’ hot way to keep warm while avoiding the winter blahs. The two-tone brown model is especially handsome with its mahogany-colored woven crown and dark-brown stingy brim. The brim is stylishly preformed. Even the all-black fedora is made more interesting by the woven leather design.

Each hat is satin lined and given a comfortable cloth sweatband that make it a treat to wear all season.

Click here to keep your look interesting all winter with the Henschel Leather Basketweave Fedora.

George "Papa Bear" Halas was the original owner and coach of the Chicago Bears. He is immortalized on this U.S. stamp in his trademark grey fedora.

He started the team in Decatur as the “Stanleys,” named for the company for whom the team played. The team didn’t work out so well for the company, and Halas was given control and ownership of the team, which he quickly moved to Chicago. They soon became the Bears in tribute to the baseball team the Cubs, who let them play at Wrigley Field.

Football back then wasn’t the national phenomenon it is today. It took someone with showmanship and an understanding of publicity to make it that popular, and Halas was just the man to do it. Halas was a great innovator and promoter as well as a talented player and coaching genius. He led the team to several national championships, while also boosting the popularity of the sport. He was the first to have football games on the radio, developed a team newspaper and was very influential in starting the movement to share TV revenue with less-well-funded teams in smaller markets, as a way to advance the popularity of the sport and ultimately make much more money.

As famous as he was for the championships, strategic inventions of formations such as the “T-Formation” and the overall growth of the sport, there was so much more to Halas. He served as an officer in the Navy during World War I. When America entered WWII, he chose to be reinstated as a Lieutenant Commander in the Navy and quit coaching until the war ended. He also donated and raised millions of dollars for charitable causes. It was enough for Chicagoans to forgive him his 19-game career as a baseball player for the New York Yankees in 1919. His replacement on the Yankees didn’t last long, either. Another upcoming star named George took the position. George was more commonly know as Babe Ruth.

Halas coached the Bears for 47 seasons and racked up a record of 318 wins that would stand as a coaching record for 3 decades. Halas remained owner and highly involved with the team until his death in 1983.

Halas is best remembered by many as the man standing on the Bears’ sideline in a short-brimmed grey fedora with a dark grosgrain bow band. Images of him in his hat still adorn the city that still holds his memory in a reverential state. He was even immortalized that way on a stamp.

At Hats Plus, we still get the occasional fan looking for their own hat like Papa Bear’s. When they come in, we direct them to the Biltmore Hayden. Not only is it virtually the same size, shape and design, it is made from the same high-quality fur felt his hats would have been made from 50 years ago.

The company has Colorado’s largest selection of hats and caps.

All headwear will be discounted 25% to 60%. Customers who spend more than $250 will get a free gift.

If you’ve never shopped at a real hat shop before, you will love the experience of trying on a new personality with each hat. Finding the perfect fit in your favorite hat or cap is a great in-person experience, as is seeing and touching the headware.

The company’s Boulder warehouse is generally closed to the public, as it services hats-plus.com and the company’s Chicago headquarters shop. Hats Plus carries headwear by Stetson, Kangol, Dobbs, Biltmore, Borsalino, Goorin Brothers, Capas, City Sport, Bailey and many other name brands.

Hat Plus–Boulder will be open Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and week days from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

It is located at Chicago, IL. It may be reached at .

Hats Plus has been one of America’s leading hat shops since 1987.

Kangol paid Hats Plus a fun visit on Nov. 9 and gave away plenty of free caps with in-store purchases. Photographed in front of our new Kangol display from the left are Kangol's North American sales director Mark Harris, regional sales rep Kelli Conroy and store manager Tod Canon.

If you missed the visit from Kangol on Saturday, Nov. 9, at Hats Plus, you missed quite the experience.

Kangol’s North American Sales Director Mark Harris and Regional Sales Representative Kelli Conroy were in attendance talking with customers and giving away free Kangol army caps (like the ones worn by Eminem) and baseball caps with every Kangol purchase.

Luckily, during a brief lull in the action, we were able work in a fun discussion about what it is like working for Kangol and the interactions they share with customers around the country.

Mark has been with the company for 15 years, and moved from England to New York as part of his job. His wife Nichola also happens to be Kangol’s design director.

“It is very interesting, as an Englishman, to move to America to work for such a legendary hat company,” Harris said. “New people, new cities. I’ve been to all the famous headwear stores across the country and met lots of interesting characters. Everyone has a story to tell about their hat.”

Kelli, an American, is based out of the Detroit area but covers a region that spans 12 states around the upper Midwest.

“I feel honored to work for a brand that is so recognized,” she said. “Everywhere I go people recognize Kangol. It has such a diverse retailer base. I meet all different kinds of people.”

Asking the man married to the company’s design director what his favorite hat or cap is might have been a bit of a loaded question. Nevertheless, Harris was game.

“I love the English Peebles,” he said. “It is made in England with English fabrics. I like the shape, the quality and that it is made in England.”

Conroy prefers the Kangol Diva.

“The Diva is made in the U.S.,” she said. “I like the floppy brim. You can hide behind it.”

What do they like most about meeting Kangol customers?

“Their stories and their love of the brand and their knowledge of the brand is incredible,” Mark said. “Where ever you go you get a story.”

“I would say their creativity,” Kelli said. “They always have a suggestion for things they want in their next Kangol.”

Best of all, the company really is listening to those suggestions, the Kangol employees agreed.

Kelli described the story about the Kangol Colette, which started its life a woman’s hat, but after a fashion designer started putting them on his male models, men started demanding the hats be made in an extra-large size. Kangol quickly obliged.

Mark detailed how a customer in Paris began altering his Kangol Mau. He would put the front way far forward and altered the back a little. Mark’s wife saw it and like it and adopted it for a new line of mau caps with that design and named it for the guy in Paris: Clery.

Customers in the shop also shared their Kangol loves and experiences.

Gil, who was in all the way from New Jersey, said, “My dad had a Kangol 30 or 40 years ago. I’ve worn it some, but it is getting too tight, so I thought I’d get a new one.”

The new Stetson Belfast is one of the fastest selling hats at Hats Plus. High fashion at an affordable price helps to pave the way for its grand success.

The Stetson Belfast is fast becoming one of the most popular new hats in Hats Plus.

Why?

Well? What’s not to love?

The Belfast features Stetson’s classic, top-notch design and construction with its teardrop crown and snap brim that can be adjusted to be worn up or down to best suit your style. The handsome self band also catches the eye with its two-tone design.

Equally impressive is that this traditional man’s hat has an entry-level price that is much more affordable than other Stetson hats.

This pricing is made possible by Stetson’s use of a wool-fur felt blend that still looks fantastic without sacrificing quality. In fact, the wool used in this fedora helps to make the hat water repellant.

Is it any wonder why this hat is selling so quickly?

Tell your neighbors! Tell your co-workers! Tell your 3rd cousin twice removed!

Representatives from the Kangol hat and cap company will be at Hats Plus on November 9 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.!

They want to meet you because they want to thank you for making Hats Plus the #1 seller of Kangol in the United States!

Supplies are limited, and YOU MUST buy a Kangol while physically IN THE STORE to get a FREE Kangol. This buy 1 get 1 deal does not count for internet orders.

This is also a ONE-DAY sale. It ends when supplies run out or the store closes at 6 p.m.

Mark the date and get to Hats Plus first thing Saturday Nov. 9.

We can’t wait to see you here!